SMS API for Japan: bulk SMS to +81 numbers

Japan is an East Asian island nation with Tokyo as its capital, known for technology, manufacturing, and tourism. Developers at banks, e-commerce platforms, logistics firms, and cultural institutions send SMS messages from their systems. Messages confirm online purchases, notify customers of bank transactions, alert drivers of delivery schedules, and remind visitors of museum bookings. SMS is chosen because it reaches all phones instantly, works for tourists roaming in Japan, and is read quickly even in busy cities.

Japan

Calling code +81

Per SMS segment
$0.01067
Messages for $100
9,372
Local language
Japanese
Encoding
Unicode (UCS-2)

What a bulk SMS send to Japan costs

Every message is priced at $0.01067 per segment to Japan. Texts over 160 GSM-7 or 70 Unicode characters are split into segments, so a two-segment text costs twice as much.
Messages1 segment2 segments
1$0.01067$0.02134
1,000$10.67$21.34
10,000$106.70$213.40
100,000$1,067.00$2,134.00

Number format in Japan

Mobile numbers in Japan have 10 digits after +81. Locally they are written with a leading 0 (090-1234-5678); in the API that 0 is dropped, so the same number goes in the to field as +81 90 1234 5678.

Alphabet and segments

Text in Japanese (kana and kanji) is always Unicode, so a message to Japan written in Japanese carries 70 characters in one segment and 67 in each part of a longer one. Codes and alerts written in English or plain Latin letters fit 160 characters, which halves the cost of a long notice.

Time zone and timing

Japan keeps UTC+9 all year with no clock change, so 09:00 in Tokyo is always 00:00 UTC. send_at takes UTC or any ISO 8601 offset, and the console scheduler converts from your own time zone.

Send to Japan with one request

The answer comes back at once with the message id, the country the number was matched to (JP) and the price. A delivered or failed event follows on your webhook, and a failed message is refunded.

For a list, send the same text to up to 10,000 numbers with POST /v1/batches, or a personal text per number in messages.

curl https://bulksmsapi.cc/v1/messages \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BULKSMSAPI_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"to": "+819012345678", "text": "Your Northwind code is 482913. It expires in 10 minutes."}'

What developers send to Japan

Common integrations that call the SMS API for recipients in Japan.

Order updates

E-commerce stores in Osaka text customers when their purchases ship, including tracking numbers and expected delivery dates.

Delivery notices

Courier companies in Nagoya send SMS alerts to drivers with optimized routes and package pickup instructions each morning.

Tour bookings

Museums in Kyoto text visitors their entry times and QR codes the day before their scheduled visit.

SMS to Japan: questions

More answers on accounts, payments and the API are in the FAQ.

How much does it cost to send bulk SMS to Japan?

Each message segment to Japan costs $0.01067. A plain text of up to 160 characters is one segment, so 1,000 one-segment messages cost $10.67 and 10,000 cost $106.70. Failed messages are refunded to the balance.

How many SMS to Japan does a $100 top-up send?

$100 covers about 9,372 one-segment messages to Japan at $0.01067 each. The first top-up adds a bonus on top, which raises that number. The balance is shared by every country, so the same top-up also pays for messages anywhere else on the list.

How do I write Japan numbers for the API?

Send them in international format with the plus sign: +81 90 1234 5678 becomes "+819012345678" in the to field. The API also accepts spaces, dashes and a 00 prefix and cleans them, and numbers that cannot be read are listed in set_aside instead of being charged.

Should we send SMS in Japanese or English?

Use Japanese for local audiences and English for tourists. In major cities like Tokyo and Osaka, bilingual messages are also effective.

Are there regional differences in SMS usage?

Yes, urban areas like Tokyo see higher volumes due to business activity, while rural areas like Hokkaido peak during tourist season.

Start sending to Japan

Create an account, top up from $40 and send to Japan at $0.01067 per segment, from the console or with one API call.

SMS API Japan: Bulk SMS to +81 From $0.01067 | BulkSMSAPI